Colorado Native

July 1, 2010Golden, CO

Reviewers:Lisa Morrison - Jeff Evans

AC Golden Brewing Co.
Golden, CO

Available: CO

This amber lager is the first and only beer to be made with all-Colorado ingredients (99.9 percent currently and 100 percent by this fall, due to a slight hops shortage in the first round). AC Golden Brewing Co. is a tiny microbrewery located within Coors’ headquarters in Golden.

ABV: 5.5ABW: 4.33Color: 14Bitterness: 32Original gravity: 1050

I confess: I was prepared to not like this beer, even though, as a former Coloradan, I was impressed that it was brewed with native-grown ingredients. But I have to admit, the big boys, in this case, Coors, did a nice job with this lager. The beer is as deep golden as fall aspen leaves and as clear as a sunny Colorado day. This Native is a straight-up beer, with a malt base that lets the citrusy hops remain poised in perfect balance making it nicely hoppy, yet smooth in flavor. In all, Native is an eminently drinkable beer. I just wish it wasn’t only available in Colorado.- Lisa Morrison

Coors’ take on the amber lager style is really quite successful. I like the biscuity, sweet malt that runs right through the beer from aroma to finish, and also the way firm, incisive hops manage to prevent it from becoming cloying at any stage. A little caramel in the background and some light floral/peach notes on top add some complexity. Perhaps the finish is a tiny bit chalky, but overall this is a beer that neatly combines flavor with decent body and high quaffability. Samuel Adams Boston Lager may well have been the inspiration.- Jeff Evans

Lisa MorrisonLisa Morrison, aka The Beer Goddess, writes about beer whenever she can and also gets to talk about it on a weekly radio show in her hometown of Portland, OR.

Jeff EvansAuthor of the Good Bottled Beer Guide and The Book of Beer Knowledge, Jeff Evans is an eight-time editor of the CAMRA Good Beer Guide and one of Britain's best-known beer writers.